Smile
by Virginia
Summary: A songfic about love lost and relinquished. Unknown characters, but all (except Jean-Luc, I made him up) are definitely from the world of HP. Okay, bad summary, just read and enjoy! ^_^


Disclaimer:  All things having to do with the wizarding world belong to the goddess JK Rowling.  The song, 'Smile,' was created by the fantastic country group Lone Star, and still belongs to them, as far as I can tell.

A/N: Just a little songfic I thought of while trying to do some hw.  I couldn't get my mind off it until it was written…I have a feeling some of my professors are not going to be too happy tomorrow.  Oh well… ^_^  Anyway, just a little romance story, and don't expect me to give away which students it's about. *evil grin*  That's what you get to decide.  Uh oh, it's time to use the imagination! ^_~   
  
  


~**_Smile~_**

**By Virginia**

  
**_I still remember the night we met   
You said you loved my smile_**

"Excuse me, have you taken out _Hogwarts, A History_ by any chance?"  He looks up from the book he is in to see _her_ the object of his affections for the past three years staring down at him.  

          "Er…yes, I took it out for some light reading for over the weekend."  

          "You consider a thousand page volume _light_ reading?" she asks, her eyes widening incredulously.  He shrugs.  

          "It's quite an easy read, if it's the sort of thing you're interested in."

          "And what sort of thing are you interested in?  History?"_ No, I'm more interested in you._  

          "Sure I am.  There are many great things we can learn from our past.  Especially what mistakes not to make over again."

          "Example?"

          "Er…never start a land war in Asia is a particular favorite of mine." He says with a straight face.

          "What?"

          "Nothing, bad joke."

          "I had no idea you could make a joke."  She arches her eyebrows in surprise.

          "If I put my mind to it."

          "Amazing, really.  Now, will you be using the book for the entire weekend, because I really need it for my History of Magic class."

          "I'll let you know."

          "By Sunday?"

          "Sure, I'll tell you by Sunday, in a park covered with trees." This time, he can't the smile at his own wit.  Again, she doesn't understand. 

          "Another joke, I suppose.  Well, just let me know when you're finished with that book, okay?"  As she turns to leave he can't stop himself from jumping up.

          "Wait!"  She turns to face him expectantly.

          "Er…" He shuffles his feet slightly, clearing his throat, "Well, what I meant to say was…willyougotoHogsmeadewithme?"  She laughs lightly causing his face to flush.

          "Sure, I would like that."  She laughs again as his face breaks out into a huge grin.  "You should try smiling more often, it does wonders for your looks."  She blushes at her own words and practically races from the library, leaving him beaming bemusedly. 

_  
**But your love for me was like a summer breeze   
Oh, it lasted for a while**   
**I could hold on a little tighter I know   
But when you love someone you gotta let 'em go, so** _

"Hey," she runs up to him, out of breath.

          "Hey, yourself.  What's going on?"

          "I want to tell you something!"

          "Okay, what is it?" She grabs his arm, pulling him into an empty classroom. 

          "This!" She exclaims before kissing him squarely on the lips.  He tries to hold her in a tight embrace, but she squirms, and he releases his grip.  She pecks him on the cheek then ducks out of the classroom, giggling madly.  "Love you!" she shouts over her shoulder, leaving him once again with a perplexed grin on his face.

**_I'm gonna smile   
'Cause I want to make you happy   
Laugh, so you can't see me cry_**   
  


          He sits alone in the common room, separate from his gossiping classmates.  _She told me she would meet here at 8:30._  He looks once again at the clock on the mantle, now reading 10:00.  One by one, his fellow housemates trail upstairs as the hands on the clock count the seconds…the minutes that he remains alone.  10:15…10:23…10:30…at 10:45 the door to the common room swings open and she climbs in quietly.  

          She catches sight of him sitting in the chair and rushes over to his side, lightly brushing a kiss on his cheek.  "Hey you." she whispers.  He can't help but smile at her shining face, and then he smells it…a pine-scented musk that wafts gently down to him.  It's not his smell…she'd told him many times he smells like orange trees and freshly cut grass.  The smile freezes on his face.

          "Doing some light reading?" She teases him when she catches sight of _Hogwarts, A History_ lying forgotten in his lap.  "Don't plan on starting a land war in Asia, do you?"  He laughs automatically, praying she doesn't notice the sudden brightness of his eyes as tears form rapidly.  She ruffles his hair affectionately. 

"I'm off to bed, now.  Good night, sweetie."

"Night." He says softly and then he's alone once again.  He stares into the fire, the unshed tears now streaming down his face.

**_I'm gonna let you go in style   
And even if it kills me   
I'm gonna smile   
  
_**

He knows it's her without turning around.  He can feel her presence standing behind him as he lounges on the bank of the lake, watching the tentacles of the giant squid waving lazily in the warm sun.  He waits for her to speak, feigning relaxation, though his entire body is tensed, dreading the words he knew she would say.

"I've been invited to go…away.  Abroad.  A special studies program; it'll supposedly help me get a seat in International Relations at the Ministry.  This is my one chance before…acceptance is limited, so…"

"Congratulations." He says without looking at her. "Where will you be going?"

"France.  For a year at least." She is silent a moment before, "I'll owl you all the time, I promise.  I'll give you my address once I get there, that way we can owl each other…"

"Yeah, that sounds good." He murmurs, and both know fully well there won't be any correspondence while she is gone.  They are silent once again, and he sighs, finally saying what he was thinking, "I'll miss you, you know."

"Yes, I know." She says quietly before touching his shoulder so he turns to look at her.  "I'll miss you too."  His lips tighten for a split moment, and she looks at him desperately.  "You do believe me, don't you?"  His lips split into the smile.  

"Of course I do." He looks back at the lake, "Have a good time in France."  He thinks she is about to say something, but instead she leaves him sitting there, the smile still plastered on his face.   
  


**_Kiss me once for the good times, baby   
Kiss me twice for goodbye _**

**_You can't help how you don't feel   
And it doesn't matter why   
Give me a chance to bow out gracefully   
'Cause that's how I want you to remember me_**   
          

          He turns around at the sound of his name being called out in Diagon Alley to see her running towards him.  She hugs him tightly, kissing his cheek happily.  "Hey!" She exclaims.

          "Hey, yourself." He steps back slightly, grinning as he looks at her.  "You look great.  How was France?"

          "Bien!  I like it a lot.  I really can't wait until I can return."

          "Oh, so you won't be here for long, then." He can barely hide the disappointment in his voice, though she doesn't seem to notice it breaking through his smile.

          "C'est vrai.  I'll be here for maybe a month or so.  Just until I get my affairs settled, and then I'll be going back, maybe for good this time."  She hesitates for a brief moment, before taking a deep breath and plowing on, "I've met someone there."

          "Well, I should hope you did." He says laughingly, "After all, you _were_ in the most heavily populated city in the whole bloody country."

          "No, it's not just someone," she falters again, "I've met a man.  His name is Jean-Luc and he proposed to me last week, just before I left.  I consented to marrying him."

          Once again the smile freezes on his face, and he wonders briefly what he was waiting for her to say.  _Did you expect her to declare her undying love to you after realizing how she couldn't live without you during her expedition in the exotic regions of France?_  

          "Then I believe some congratulations are in store for you." he manages to force out, "Have you set the date yet?"

          "Next summer, in June.  Early summer is always so beautiful in France, and we were planning on having the wedding out of doors." She practically gushed.  _Yes, you always told me you wanted an outside wedding with white and pink roses in you bouquet and pansies in your hair.  You said you wanted to get married in bare feet, and dance your first dance as a wife across the grass as the sun sets in an array of perfect colors.  I would have danced without shoes too…if only you'd given me the chance._ He thinks sadly.

          He says brightly, "Well, I'm really happy for you." 

          "Are you going to be in Diagon Alley for awhile?"

          "I have a few errands to run, so I think so." 

          "Want to go to Florean's for a hot fudge Sunday?"

          "I would like that very much."_  **  
  
**_

**_I'm gonna smile   
'Cause I want to make you happy   
Laugh, so you can't see me cry   
I'm gonna let you go in style   
And even if it kills me   
I'm gonna smile _**

They spend the day in Diagon Alley, reminiscing old school days, but never talking about what they were, what they had once been.  They joke, laughing loudly over the whipped cream and cherries on their Sundays, smiling and chatting as they look in the windows of the various shops and pointing out oddities to each other.  They share stories with one another; what he's been doing, what she's been doing.  How she met the mysterious Jean-Luc, how he had only met one or two girls since graduation.

"But I thought you would be beating them off with a stick when you left school!"

"Nah.  I've been really busy with work, too.  Working with the Ministry is very demanding of my time."  He avoided her prying with practiced ease, just as he had avoided talking about her with others.  

As dusk falls on the pair, she wishes him good night, saying she'll owl him.  He smiles, saying he'll do the same.  As they part ways for the last time and she is out of sight, his head falls to his chest and a sob escapes him, a cry only heard by the coldly blinking stars as they make their first appearance in the night sky.   
  
**_I'm gonna smile   
So you can find the courage   
Laugh, so you won't see me hurtin'   
I'm gonna let you go in style   
And even if it kills me   
I'm gonna smile._**

          He stares at the envelope in his hand, the carefully curling, golden script addressed to his name.  It's the wedding invitation.  To _her_ wedding.  To _her_ marriage…to somebody else.  He opens it without looking at the first card that cordially invites him to their wedding on the beaches of Southern France.  He takes out the second card, a simple, one-sided card with two words written on it next to their very own little boxes:

                   _~ Accept_

_                   ~ Decline_

Without a second thought, he scratches a check next to _Decline_, and then writes some short excuse on the back of the card, avoiding her with the same ease accomplished in Diagon Alley.  _She'll never know what I feel for her…she'd never understand, and could never return  my feelings.   _As he watches the owl fly off with his final rejection, he thinks to himself, _I wonder if Jean-Luc smells like pine._

          He shakes his head.  _Stop that.  She's never felt the same for you as you did her.  You were just too blind to notice it._  A tear rolls down his cheek, but he wipes it away, looking up at the clear blue sky.  _Just let her go._  And, as a real smile breaks out over his face, he does.

**_I'm gonna smile._**


End file.
